More than 300 teams will fire up their smokers at the popular World's Championship Bar-B-Que at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

More than 300 teams will fire up their smokers at the popular World's Championship Bar-B-Que at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

Photo: Gary Barchfeld

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Scenes from the 2012 World s Championship Bar-B-Que at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

Scenes from the 2012 World s Championship Bar-B-Que at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

Photo: Gary Barchfeld

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Scenes from the 2012 World s Championship Bar-B-Que at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

Scenes from the 2012 World s Championship Bar-B-Que at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

Photo: Gary Barchfeld

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Scenes from the 2012 World s Championship Bar-B-Que at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

Scenes from the 2012 World s Championship Bar-B-Que at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

Photo: Gary Barchfeld

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Scenes from the 2012 World s Championship Bar-B-Que at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

Scenes from the 2012 World s Championship Bar-B-Que at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

Photo: Gary Barchfeld

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Scenes from the 2012 World s Championship Bar-B-Que at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

Scenes from the 2012 World s Championship Bar-B-Que at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

Photo: Gary Barchfeld

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Scenes from the 2012 World s Championship Bar-B-Que at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

Scenes from the 2012 World s Championship Bar-B-Que at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

Photo: Gary Barchfeld

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Scenes from the 2012 World s Championship Bar-B-Que at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

Scenes from the 2012 World s Championship Bar-B-Que at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

Photo: Gary Barchfeld

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Scenes from the 2012 World s Championship Bar-B-Que at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

Scenes from the 2012 World s Championship Bar-B-Que at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

Photo: Gary Barchfeld

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Scenes from the 2012 World s Championship Bar-B-Que at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

Scenes from the 2012 World s Championship Bar-B-Que at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

Photo: Gary Barchfeld

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Scenes from the 2012 World s Championship Bar-B-Que at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

Scenes from the 2012 World s Championship Bar-B-Que at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

Photo: Gary Barchfeld

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Scenes from the 2012 World s Championship Bar-B-Que at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

Scenes from the 2012 World s Championship Bar-B-Que at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

Photo: Gary Barchfeld

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A variety of meats, including brisket, ribs and chicken, will be prepared at the popular contest.

A variety of meats, including brisket, ribs and chicken, will be prepared at the popular contest.

Photo: Gary Barchfeld

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Scenes from the 2012 World s Championship Bar-B-Que at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

Scenes from the 2012 World s Championship Bar-B-Que at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

Photo: Gary Barchfeld

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The judges are looking for great taste among entries, competitor Johnny Trigg says.

The judges are looking for great taste among entries, competitor Johnny Trigg says.

Photo: Gary Barchfeld

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Scenes from the 2012 World s Championship Bar-B-Que at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

Scenes from the 2012 World s Championship Bar-B-Que at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

Photo: Gary Barchfeld

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Scenes from the 2012 World s Championship Bar-B-Que at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

Scenes from the 2012 World s Championship Bar-B-Que at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

Photo: Gary Barchfeld

'Godfather' makes a rib rodeo fans can't refuse

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They call him "Godfather of BBQ," a nickname he earned from years as a professional pitmaster on the competitive barbecue circuit. The name fits Johnny Trigg, a good-natured, 74-year-old barbecue wiz who looks like a Texas rancher straight out of central casting.

Though Trigg has too-many-to-name national barbecue titles, he's a relative newcomer to the glorious mysteries of smoke and meat. The Alvarado resident didn't grow up stinking of pit fumes; he didn't enter his first barbecue competition until 1990.

But he's made up for lost time. Trigg, who attends about 40 to 45 barbecue events a year, is the only competitor to have won two Grand Champion titles at the Jack Daniel's World Championship Invitational Barbecue in 2000 and 2003. Barbecue fans will know him from the reality show "BBQ Pitmasters," now on Discovery's Destination America.

This weekend, he brings his team Smokin' Triggers to Houston to cook with Team USO BBQ at the World's Championship Bar-B-Que at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. More than 300 teams will fire up the smokers at Reliant Park Thursday through Saturday at the event that is among the rodeo's most popular.

Translator

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Trigg's first time at the rodeo, in 2004, was a good year for him - he placed second in ribs and third overall. Last year, the barbecue deities didn't smile on him. His ribs overcooked and left him high and dry.

This year, emboldened by a recent string of brisket victories, he's planning to return to the rodeo with a vengeance. We talked to Trigg, as he was driving to Louisiana to teach a barbecue class. Here's what the 2012 inductee to the National Barbecue Hall of Fame told us:

His equipment: My pit is a Jambo Pit. It's 5 feet long, 26 inches in diameter, with a 30-by-30-by-30 (inch) firebox. It cooks indirect. I have two of them. I've been cooking on the Jambo since 1992.

His wood: Pecan.

His specialty: I'm known as a rib cooker. Ribs are my specialty - pork spare ribs. Not babyback ribs. Spare ribs have much more flavor, and they make a better presentation.

This year's entry: This year, I'll be making brisket for Houston. All last year I've done better with brisket, and I'm on a roll, so I'll do that. It's Wagyu brisket. The marbling in it is unbelievable. It has three times or four times the marble of the regular American-style brisket. I have to special order it from Snake River Farms in Boise, Idaho.

Brisket notes: You have to get good-quality meat. You can't pinch pennies. You have to get the best. With brisket there's three grades: prime, choice and select. Get the best. Then get a spice rub that will complement the meat. You have to have great flavor to get the judges' attention. But you can't oversmoke it. Judges don't like a heavily smoked meat.

What judges look for: Taste, naturally. They're looking for taste. And tenderness but not overcooked. You can be penalized for being overcooked. They don't like a rib that is falling off the bone. They like a slight tug to it but really tender. Ribs are real critical because you need to cook them right to the turn-in time. That's what killed me last year; they got done an hour early, and they tightened up. It was a disaster. With brisket you can hold it, but not ribs.

Seasoning: I've use the same seasoning for years. It's a sweet base with a little kick to it. It's got a lot of sugar in it, and garlic, paprika and black pepper. Everything I cook, all my meats have a sweet taste to it. And I glaze (brisket) with a sauce that is ketchup based. Right at the end I put a light glaze before I take it off the cooker, just to kind of sweeten it up. Most judges like a little glaze. It's sweet, but it has a little bite to it.

Rubs: I've been using the same (brisket) rub since 1992. It's a very simple rub - a commercial rub. I used to make all my rubs, but there's too many good rubs out there now. It's very expensive to make your own rub, so I just buy all of mine now. I will say my rub comes from the Houston area. But I have different rubs for different meats.

Critical tool: You need a real good digital thermometer. Get a good thermometer. Cook your brisket to an internal temperature of 203 degrees. At 203 it's not overcooked or undercooked. With ribs, you don't check temperature. You take a toothpick and stick it in between the bones. If it goes in real smooth with no resistance, it's done. Just like a cake.

Pitmaster tip: You shouldn't be consuming alcohol while you're competing. The competition is tough. The cooks today are cooking better and better, so you need every edge you can get. If you're drinking alcohol you might forget something. I love to see them drinking - it might improve my odds. I love a good cold beer as much as anyone, but on Friday and Saturday, I don't drink.

On winning: When I go to a cook-off, I go to win. I have every intention to win. This year down in Houston I think I have a real good chance with brisket. When I send that tray in, it's going to be No. 1.

For information and individual day ticket pricing for the World's Championship Bar-B-Que at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo at Reliant Park, see rodeohouston.com.